You've got good points, and you're right that I didn't explain "master of words" well. I think that most people are about as bad with listening comprehension a

You've got good points, and you're right that I didn't explain "master of words" well. I think that most people are about as bad with listening comprehension as they are in reading comprehension. It's why in ToastMasters you're told to structure your speech in the format of "Tell the audience what you're about to tell them. Tell them it. And then tell them what you just told them." The amount of _time_ he spends on a topic just shows that he's thinking about and that it's important to him. He's conveying that he cares and he takes it seriously. He's not trying to explain tactics or be especially witty. And this is a style that we're not used it! Which is why it took everyone off-guard, and made people who are "classically" good-with-words underestimate him. But who knows, maybe this is just 20/20 hindsight.